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Bucks-Timberwolves Preview

Nov 5, 2009 - 10:03 PM By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN STATS Senior Writer

Milwaukee (1-2) at Minnesota (1-4), 8:00 p.m. EDT

The Minnesota Timberwolves had two picks in the draft lottery this past June and selected guards Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn.

They passed on a chance to get Brandon Jennings, who was taken 10th by the Milwaukee Bucks and has been stellar in his first three NBA games.

The top rookie scorers in the league meet for the first time Friday night when Jennings and the Bucks visit Flynn and the Timberwolves.

Minnesota (1-4) grabbed Rubio and Flynn with the fifth and sixth picks. Rubio opted to stay in Spain while Flynn earned the starting point guard job, averaging 13.8 points and 3.6 assists.

Those numbers, though, pale in comparison to what Jennings has produced. He is averaging 22.0 points and is second to Golden State's Stephen Curry among rookies with 5.3 assists per game.

Jennings did not attend college, choosing to play a season in Europe, and his stock likely suffered as a result. His play, though, has not as he has increased his scoring output every game.

Jennings had 25 points against Chicago on Monday in an 83-81 loss - the Bucks' 11th road defeat in 12 games.

"He genuinely loves to play the game," Bucks coach Scott Skiles told the Bulls' official Web site. "I know everyone says they do, but I think we all know at this level there are a lot of guys who love the game and there are other guys who love the stuff the game provides. He loves to play and he's in the gym all the time."

The 20-year-old Jennings may have to shoulder more of the scoring load with Michael Redd out for two weeks with a strained tendon in his left knee. Redd has averaged at least 21 points the last five seasons.

With Rubio staying abroad, Flynn beat out Ramon Sessions for the starting job with Minnesota. Sessions played the last two seasons with the Bucks (1-2), starting 39 games in 2008-09, before they allowed him to leave after picking Jennings.

Flynn has been steady, scoring in double figures in every game and shooting 50 percent from the field. His young club, though, dropped its fourth straight Wednesday, 92-90 to Boston.

Oleksiy Pecherov scored a career-high 24 points and Al Jefferson added 18 for the Timberwolves, whose last three losses came by a combined 13 points.

"We played hard, we played with a lot of energy," Pecherov said. "We just have to learn how to finish these games. We've been playing the last three games with great effort. To lose at the end of the game is kind of hard. It's what we need to learn about."

Minnesota has won three straight overall against Milwaukee and nine of the last 10 matchups at the Target Center.